Using Aromatherapy to Create a Mindful Group Travel Experience

September 11, 20185 min read

The mindfulness movement has brought with it many trends and experiences designed to help us enjoy the world and all its beauty and feel at peace with ourselves and our lives. Group travel tours are nothing new, but a global craving for inner peace presents an opportunity to make your tours stand out.

As a tour operator, planner, or guide, consider giving your tours a mindfulness element to appeal to health-conscious clients who want to get the most out of their travel experiences. Mindful tours support travelers in cultivating kindness, compassion, and present-centered awareness, making the trip a much more meaningful one for everyone involved.

Mindfulness has many definitions, but the underlying goal is consistent: to experience the present moment, without judgment or resistance, exactly as it is. People who practice mindfulness regularly find they are calmer and more focused throughout the day; they are less reactive and more accepting no matter what situation they face. Mindfulness teaches us to see things objectively without giving them labels such as “bad” or “stressful.”

If you have been arranging travel tours for some time, you’re aware of how frustrating and exhausting group travel can be—both for you and for travelers. That reality makes mindfulness a perfect addition to the theme of your trips.

It’s simple to create a mindful travel experience and make your trips more enjoyable for your guests. From local engagement to enriching aromatherapy, here are some easy ways to provide travel tours that offer more than just sightseeing–they’ll offer personal transformation.

Emphasize light packing

Encourage your guests to bring along only what they need. Their travel lists will always vary with the destination and duration of the trip, but in every case, there’s a minimum number of things that are always on the list– so try to have guests stick to only packing these essentials. You can provide a list for them to follow as they pack to give them an idea of the kind of pared-down travel you’re aiming for.

Fewer things mean a simpler time; less time worrying about what to wear, less time spent on grooming and cosmetics, less worry that something valuable will go missing, and even less fuel wasted by traveling with less weight. Carrying lightweight bags is much easier, and travelers will spend less time fussing with stuff and more time immersing themselves in the experience–which is what really matters.

Encourage personal daily mindfulness practices

Many people–especially those who seek out mindful travel experiences–have mindfulness practices that help them stay focused and centered at home. They might meditate each morning, for example, or spend time each evening writing in a journal to clear their heads. Whether they prefer yoga, mantras, or some other form of mindfulness, have them bring their preferred mindfulness activity along on your trip.

On the road, it can be hard to maintain a consistent routine. Making time for mindfulness while incorporating the strategies your group already employs at home can help travelers get more out of their journey. You can even implement optional group meditation times or build time into the schedule for journaling and reflecting.

Engage with locals

There’s no better way to travel mindfully than to engage with the people you encounter and even learn a bit of the language so you can connect with them. Truly understanding a place means getting to know the people who live there. It’s essential to approach a new place with an open, inquisitive mind so we

can learn new perspectives and develop an appreciation for unfamiliar cultural norms. This practice also allows us to observe local customs and behave politely in a culture that’s foreign to us–which we should always do as guests in their home.

Accepting and adopting the local customs shows you are interested in their culture and respect their preferences. That foundation will make it easier to mindfully engage with–and learn from–the locals you encounter throughout the trip.

Minimize your impact

Even though travel is a relatively high-impact activity when it comes to the environment, there are still things we can do to keep our ecological footprint as small as possible. For one thing, when we travel, we tend to engage in habits we don’t have at home, such as buying single-use plastic water bottles and plastic cutlery or using Styrofoam containers and plastic grocery bags.

Consider ways to minimize the impact your trips have on the environment, including spending more time in fewer places, taking ground transportation instead of flying when possible, using public transport or walking instead of taking taxis, not using straws in drinks, picking up trash when you see it lying around, and taking along reusable water bottles and grocery bags to avoid unnecessary waste. Everyone can make a difference and taking care of the Earth is a great way to help your tour group feel mindful and grateful for all they have.

Incorporate aromatherapy

Aromatherapy makes a lovely addition to any mindfulness practice, and it’s right at home at every stage of a travel tour from planning to returning home. It can be fun to find the right scents to complement different group tour destinations–for example, jasmine or white cactus flower for a desert retreat; earthy and spicy neroli and sandalwood for a journey to Morocco; classic rose and white tea for a trip to Italy; or something floral and citrusy for a tropical island escape.

Choose from our wide range of 100% pure essential and aroma oils to find the fragrances that suit your travel group’s sensory needs and interests. Our aroma blends are designed perfectly for use with AromaTech diffusers, so be sure to select the ones you need for your business so your aromatherapy experience is seamless for group travelers. Our AromaCube is so portable that it’s a perfect companion for hotel rooms, while Drive uses 100% essential oils to scent the inside of your vehicle and give you a calming, pleasant travel experience. For a small office space, the AroMini is sleek, silent, and powerful—perfect for welcoming clients and staying focused while planning a group trip. You can use a diffuser in a meditation space to add an element of sensory stimulation and mindfulness to your activities or the mindful activities of your travel group.

There are so many ways to use mindfulness as a tool when planning and carrying out group travel tours, and aromatherapy is the essential complement to a mindful trip. With the mindfulness tips above and your favorite AromaTech scents and diffusers, you can transform a regular group tour into a memorable mindfulness retreat.